Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos
by hotaru anne
Summary: A new enemy threatens the Senshi, but is only interested in the Senshi of Silence...is Sailor Saturn strong enough to vanquish this evil foe?
1. Silent Hours

Here's my first story to my SM story. ^^ Please R&R  
  
~Silent Hours~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
Silence.  
  
It was a very good way of describing her surroundings. Bleak, dark, terribly quiet. Not that she was complaining.   
  
Another one of these mysterious dark beings were somewhere about, causing mayhem about the city. She never really liked being alone, but alone came up most frequently in her life. Her mother dead for as long as she could remember, her father controlled by the Sovereign of Silence and always cooped up in his lab, and she had no friends nor siblings.  
  
Nonetheless, she thought as she ventured about the darkness of the area. She can take care of herself. She always had. She always will. She may look like a harmless fourteen year old now, but she had silence on her side. She can battle any old henchman. Ugly or grotesque.  
  
She stopped to breathe. She wished she had someone to accompany her. Setsuna decided to go with Usagi, in case she started batting at the food shops. Michiru and Haruka were virtually inseperable as Ami and Makoto went about searching at the parks. Minako and Rei went about the schools and other places. Leaving Hotaru to walk about where none of them would venture.   
She still was the odd person in the group; go figure. It made her uncomfortable to think that she would never fit in with the other scouts; well, she didn' really blame them. she was posessed at one point and she did carry the weapon of absolute destruction. She couldn't blame them for feeling like that, but that didn't mean that she should go about alone.   
  
But she was strong. She could manage whatever awaited her.   
  
If only she wasn't always sick.   
  
Something growled in the shadows. It was so low in bass, it made her jumpy now. She felt herself now attached fluidly with her dark clothing as she looked around, her hand free in case she had to transform. There was something there, she could feel it with her mind.   
  
Don't make any noise, Hotaru, she thought coolly. You'll find the thing that's freaking out the other scouts. Who knows, you might even be accepted by the others. Now isn't that something to look forward to? Her cheery inner voice surprised her a lot as she looked around cautiously.  
  
Another growl. "Ho...ta...ru..."  
  
She jumped another feet. Who was calling her? Now her heart was racing. What was this all about??? Now she clentched her fist as she roamed about the silence of the dark alley. She began to doubt her ability as her mind went paranoid. What was going on????  
  
"Hotaru...."  
  
"Who---Who's there?" she demanded shakily.   
  
"Hotaru," it rasped. "The bearer of Silence, the Messiah of Silence, the samurai of Silence...you...must...be...des---troyed." It growled and leaped at her from out of nowhere.   
  
Hotaru leaped as the thing scratched her long-sleeved shirt. And it was brand new too! Not worrying too much about her new shirt, she started running. She skidded along the side of the wall from the alley and started running for her dear life. The thing followed her too; it was following her mad.  
She barely got a glimpse, but it was hideous; half-gargoyle, half panther. Or something like that. It gave her the chills as she continued to run.  
  
"What...do...you...want with me!" she panted as she ran.  
  
"Your...soul..."  
  
Now she was getting freaked out. She ran across the fields as fast as she could ever do. The thing was still on her tail. She had to do something. She couldn't transform here, and running no less, if it was possible. The lake was ahead; she could jump over and see whether the blasted thing could swim...if she could survive the thing herself...  
  
She was now cornered. She gasped at how far the cliff goes. She turned to see that the thing was now there as well, gasping and smiling hideously, showing all its sharp teeth. My, they were sharp...she was running out of ideas. Just perfect. Jumping was her last option open, and there weren't very many to choose from.  
  
"You...can't...escape...Chaosis..."  
  
The name hit her like a stake through the heart. Chaosis...the ultimate mastermind, her foe.   
  
"I see...you recognize...the name," the thing continued to babble.  
  
"I will never bow down to the Lord of Ch---"  
  
"Mars Flame Sniper!"  
  
"Love and Beauty Shock!"  
  
Streaks of fire and beams of light sprang out from her left as it pierced the enemy at the side. The enemy staggered back, gasping for breath as Sailor Venus and Sailor Mars ran up to a shaking Hotaru. "Hotaru!" Mars called. "Are you okay?"  
  
Hotaru shuddered. No, she wasn't.  
  
Venus looked out at the enemy. "She's coming around, Mars..."  
  
"She won't be for long!" Mars ran to battle, but after a few moments, Mars was gasping for breath, on her back, filled with scrapes and bruises. The enemy was proven to be more able then supposed. But now wasn't the time to contemplate.   
  
"I gotta help her..." Venus groaned as she held Hotaru back.  
  
"Submarine Reflection!"  
  
"Space Sword Blaster!"  
  
Neptune and Uranus appeared, not wasting anytime, cool and calculating, ready to anticipate the next blow with their weapons. They calmly stood as Uranus said, "I am the Earth Senshi, who stands for justice against tyrants like you. I am Sailor Uranus!"  
  
Neptune, "And I am the Water Senshi, who will fight against things like you that harm other people. I am Sailor Neptune!"  
  
The enemy smiled, showing all those nasty teeth. "Nice intro," it rasped. "But now, let me show you the real power of Chaos!" The unknown enemy produced a gigantic energy blast that slammed into Uranus and Neptune with not much of a fight. The two senshi were struck and thrown against two heavy oak trees.  
  
It was too fast; the enemy was too fast. It was unbelievable.  
  
"Uranus! Neptune!" Hotaru cried, loosening the grip from Venus and running towards them. She bent down where Uranus lay, filled with scars and scabs unlike any enemy could do before. This scared Hotaru; the evil henchman was worse than she thought. I should've jumped when I had a chance, she thought ruefully.  
  
By then, Sailor Jupiter, Mercury, Moon and Pluto had arrived and Sailor Moon didn't waste her time doing her justice and love stuff as they all started their attack assult on the enemy alongside with a pumped up Venus. One by one, they failed, tossed aside like scrap.  
  
"Baka...kid..." Uranus murmured from the wounds, "Hotaru...why didn't...you...fight?" She winced in pain as Hotaru told her, "Because...they aren't any ordinary tyrants..."  
  
"No excuses!" Uranus rasped forcefully.  
  
"You...have...to do something," Neptune added wearily. "No choices."  
  
Hotaru gasped at their harshness. The situation was cold. And right now, so were the people she supposedly trust. The enemy was a henchman of the ultimate foe Hotaru could ever face in her life. If she managed to get out of this unscathed, this might arouse questions. Questions unlike any before. And she prayed day and night that this would never come to be. Unfortunately, she had to make a choice now.  
  
"Ho..ta..ru," the henchman hissed, etching closer.   
  
"Hotaru, run!" Mars cried, grimacing at the state she was in.  
  
  
"We can beat this guy," Jupiter said hoarsely. "Just get to safety!"  
  
Hotaru was now in a whir of actions as she was stuck with the decision. Fight with the scouts or contemplate on her death. The enemy lashed out at her, but she leaped away with surprising speed, which surprised all the scouts. Her speed in their eyes, seemed to match the enemy.   
  
The enemy blinked. "How...when...why...?"  
  
Feeling a lot stronger now, she raised her hand. "Saturn Make-up!"  
In a fury of emotions, she had transformed to Sailor Saturn, the Senshi of Silence. With her trusty glaive at hand, she was prepared to fight the enemy...but something was different about her...  
  
Pluto blinked. "Something is different about her," she remarked.  
  
The other gasped as Saturn challenged the enemy. She matched speed and blow when everyone knew that Saturn was not exactly capable of doing such things. She was fragile and weak in health yet she was able to fight a tyrant like that. Something didn't add up. It wasn't exactly possible.  
  
Mars narrowed her eyes. She could feel fire. But she couldn't hear it. It wasn't as soundful as the wind or as calm as the waters, it was...silent. She could only hear silence. She then gasped. She knew what it was.  
  
  
~*End of Chapter 1*~  
I took a while figuring out their latest attacks. If there's any type-os, oops. ^^ R&R 


	2. The Flame of Silence

Here's the second installment to my story. I hope you enjoy it. ^^ It's taking a while, yah, I know. I'm busy with my Dark Angel fic, continuing to upload the rest of my Babylon 5 and I'm still moping about for a Jou Kido sequel (Digimon) before I can put up the trilogy. Aaaaggghhh! Anyways, R&R! Btw, there's a little gory part, so watch it!  
  
  
~The Flame of Silence~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
"Mars, what's...wrong?" Moon asked in her paralyzed state.  
  
Mars didn't realize that she was flinching visibly from what she felt.   
  
Saturn's fire was burning for some odd reason. She could feel the strenght it was giving to Saturn and she could see that the young scout was beating the enemy...bad.   
  
Pluto seemed to sense Mars' uneasiness as she understood what was going on. She, too, could feel the sudden change of energy within Saturn. It was a strange thing, this new power within her. It was as if her pure heart had become more than just a temple for energy now...but how vast has her powers become? She watched the other scouts faces twist bewilderedly. "She senses change in Saturn."  
  
"The little one?" Neptune rasped.   
  
"No," Uranus said hoarsely, "it can't be. Her, stronger than us?"  
  
Mars looked at them. "Yes," she replied. "She is. I can't explain it...but her heart, it's giving her strenght or something...."  
  
"Agreed," Pluto said stiffly.   
  
Mercury tapped the side of her forehead to reveal her glasses. With a weak tap, her computer-glasses scanned the figure of the thin-framed Saturn, who was now really ready to go as she fought with her silent glaive at hand. Statistics, numbers, scans, power levels, energy...."Something inside of her is causing you to feel the strange power," she explained calmly. "It's something even my computer can't explain."  
  
"We got...to help her," Jupiter told them.  
  
"I agree," Venus agreed. "Sailor Moon! We have to help her."  
  
Moon winced. She was afraid they were going to look up to her for the final say. She sighed; life was not being very kind to her. She stood up with her wobbly feet and said, "Let's go, Sailor Scouts! Moon Tiara!"  
  
Her tiara became a disk and she threw it like a frizbee. The tiara missed them by a fraction of an inch, hit against a tree and then came spinning back to Sailor Moon. She was too slow; the tiara hit her on her forehead, sending her spiralling back to the other senshi.  
  
Mars rolled her eyes. "Smooth move, Sailor Moon."  
  
"Uranus...World...Shaking!"  
  
"Jupiter...Oak...Evolution!"  
  
The two strong senshi blasted their attacks with all their might, but with no success. Not only was the attack not strong enough, but the enemy was moving too fast with its stealth and speed. Somehow, Saturn was keeping up with the enemy.  
  
Jupiter aggressively ran towards the battlefield, yelling a thunder attack despite Uranus' protest. It hit the ground, missing the dark thing, and electricity was shattered all over the place, making every Senshi duck for cover as the sparks bit their skin and clothes.  
  
Saturn and the enemy were still at it, no scars. And she was batting at the enemy with her glaive.  
  
The enemy was wincing as her glaive hit its arms. Black ooze began to flow.  
  
"Venus...Love...Chain...Encircle!"  
  
"Mars...Celestial Fire...Ignite!"  
  
The light and fire missed the enemy again. Venus crashed to the ground with a resounding thud while Mars cursed beneath her breath. She then sprinted, her heels stabbing against the earth, trying to inflict some pain onto the enemy. But it was too fast, and Mars fell flat onto the floor.  
  
"Mars!" Venus cried wildly.   
  
"Pluto...Dead Scream!"  
  
"Neptune...Deep...Submerge!"  
  
Again, the silence and the water missed. Neptune gasped lightly, clutching her side as she sulked to the floor, feeling pain wash over her. Pluto tried to trip the enemy, but it jumped onto it, kicked Pluto at the face and jumped off her staff. Pluto toppled over, her head meeting the ground with a thud.  
"Pluto!" Mercury cried, leaping in to cast her body out.   
  
The enemy came at full speed and knocked Mercury down before she could defend herself from the blow.   
  
Moon shook her head. "I don't get it," she murmured. "What is going on?"  
  
A fustrated Uranus cursed and then cried, "Saturn, do something!"  
  
Saturn seemed to feel light. She didn't get it. All of a sudden, she felt strong inside and out, like she could do anything. It was a good feeling, but a strange feeling as well. Hearing Uranus shout out to her realized that she had a job to do.  
  
"Hotaru...join us...don't make us hurt you..."  
  
"Don't listen to it, Saturn!" Pluto cried. "You know what to do!"  
  
Yes, she did. I wish I didn't have to do it, she thought ruefully. I don't wanna hurt other people. But this enemy...it scared her. It scared her so much, it was driving her nuts. Whatever it was doing, it was also making her stronger. Giving her a will. A strong will.   
  
Control, Hotaru, control.  
  
The enemy flinched. "Wha---What's going on?"  
  
Silence...  
  
"What is she doing?" Uranus cried ferociously.   
  
She felt a power surge into her hands. The clouds darkened as she raised her hands. A round energy ball appeared in her hands, a shocking purple in contrast with the sky, cackling its extrodinary power.  
  
Flashbacks.  
  
Her, crying over her dead goldfish, Bubbles.  
  
Kaori Knight*, "You're the one who's weird."  
  
Uranus. "There's something weird about that kid."  
  
One of her classmates. "She's such a faker...she hurts someone and she acts as if she dosen't even know she did it."  
  
Galactica's face.   
  
Something came over her as she looked at the enemy, who was now trembling, and then screamed, "Silence...Sphere...Engage!"  
  
~*End of Chapter 2*~  
What'cha think? R&R! 


	3. Delusions of the Moment

Here's the third installment of the story. ^^ R&R. Mind you that these characters do not belong to me.  
  
  
  
~*Delusions of the Moment*~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
"Silence...Sphere...Engage!"  
  
Uranus' eyes widened. "Everyone, duck!" She pushed Neptune down.  
  
All the senshi ducked as the glowing sphere was spiralling towards the enemy at such a graceful sence, it could've been artistic. Saturn was still in her stance when she released the ball of energy, the winds blowing wildly around her hair, her eyes like glass.  
  
"Ho...ta...ru..."  
  
Saturn didn't pay attention to the enemy's pleading.  
  
"Chao...sis..."  
  
Saturn flinched at the mention of the name.  
  
Despite the debris, Pluto looked up, squinting, watching Satrun flinch. Who is Chaosis? she wondered to herself. She flinches at nothing, she is strong as lightning yet she breaks at the mention of the name. Why was that? Who was Chaosis?  
  
The sphere hit the enemy.  
  
Everything went dark.  
  
  
"Hotaru?"  
  
She fluttered her eyes open. Setsuna's crimson eyes met hers. Hotaru blinked again; making sure of where she was. Just as she thought, she was back. Not in her Senshi clothes, but just her uniform. Setsuna was looking wistfully with concern. The ceiling was familiar; Rei's temple.   
  
"Are you okay, Hotaru?" Setsuna asked calmly.  
  
Hotaru bobbed her head. Yes. I think.  
  
Rei appeared, in her Shinto cloting. She was carrying a wooden bowl with something steaming. "Here, Hotaru," she said gently. "Drink this. It'll make you feel stronger."  
  
"Arigatou, Rei-chan."  
  
As she drank, she became fiercely aware of the looks she was given. Haruka was leaning by the window sill, glaring down at Hotaru while her counterpart, Michiru, was sitting down, looking out the window. Makoto had stepped outside for some air while Minako was sitting with Ami, looking at Hotaru and whispering. Serena was sitting down, eating gleefully.   
  
I feel so alone in a room full of people...  
  
"I don't understand," Haruka finally said. "How could a kiddo like you wind up with such immense power?"  
  
Hotaru looked up at her, their eyes meeting. But it was strange, Hotaru couldn't just see Haruka's hostile glare, but she could feel a dark part of her. Something that was not seen to other people, something she hid from others. She felt...the wind...  
  
Haruka turned away.  
  
"Something is wrong," Makoto said from outside.  
  
"What do you mean?" Minako asked from where she sat.   
  
Makoto walked inside slowly, calmly. Her brown hair swished as she strode inside and remained standing, pretty close to the wall. "The earth...the thunder...it's all going havoc. It's like the earth is mourning or something...it's afraid of something. Something is going to happen..."  
  
Hotaru could sence the earth call to Makoto for she was connected to the earth, the trees. Her heart was like the earth, strong, down to earth, will never bend to other peoples' demands. She could sence a dark part in her mind, something that was never known, except for the earth.  
  
"The wind is crying for a soldier," Haruka told them. Wind.  
  
Michiru calmly turned to them, her eyes filled with some kind of fear. Hotaru could sence the calm waves that she could feel. Her mind was so calm...yet there was a silent part in her..."The waters are not calm," she declared calmly. "They're troubled...something is definitely up."  
  
Rei nodded. "The fire is blazing but there is no enemy to turn," she responded wearily. "I tried consulting the fire, but somehow, the fire seemed to be concerned at something. Something greater than its flames and its light or warmth. Some...danger..." She winced.   
  
Hotaru felt the fire flinch.  
  
"Rei, you've been pushing youself too hard," Ami said softly, looking up from her calculus textbook. "You should go rest now."  
  
Rei shook her head. "Hotaru's still not well."  
  
Hotaru shook her head automatically. "It's okay, Rei-chan," she responded, sliding off the bed immediately. "I feel much better now, arigatou."  
  
"No, Hotaru!"  
  
As soon as she got to her feet, she felt dizzy and her feet gave out on her. Setsuna and Rei was there to pull her back onto the bed while the others watched them, eyes narrowed in deep contemplation.  
  
Hotaru felt like she was floating. Feelings, sensations, thoughts, perspectives...silence...she could feel it all. Mist, gray mist, seemed to envelope her mind. Their voices were no longer there, just some background mumble. Something was beckoning her.   
  
Like some hindered memory.   
  
Suddenly, she found herself standing on a cliff.   
  
  
~*End of Chapter 3*~  
Sorry I cut off the action but i couldn't add to it. There will be more fight scenes as the story progresses. please R&R! arigatou! 


	4. Illusions on the Abyss

Here's the next chapter to the story. This is mainly background info, but mind you, I am not revealing all! heh heh...none of these characters belong to me...cept Chaosis...in a sence that he is not Chaos itself. R&R!  
  
  
~*Illusions on the Abyss*~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
Where am I? Hotaru wondered.  
  
The wind was blowing in her face; it felt chillingly real. She was standing on the cliff facing out on a flat stretch of land, as far as her eye could go. At the corner of her eye, jagged cliffs continued down either end.   
The sky was gray. Like a storm was approaching.   
  
She could sense something in the air. Something evil.  
  
"Hello?" she asked timidly. "Setsuna? Rei? Usagi!"  
  
Echoes.  
  
Whispers.  
  
Hotaru shivered, taking a set back. She stepped on a piece of cloth. She looked down, finding out that she was no longer wearing her school uniform. She was wearing a long violet dress, its skirt having a slit at each side to expose her thin legs and her knee-high boots, her upper-part covered in a silver-gray armour with ancient engravings.  
  
Interesting, she thought.  
  
"Ho...ta...ru..."  
  
She looked up sharply, her hair played by the wind. It sounded like the enemy she had defeated just recently. Silence..."Who are you?" she cried. "What do you want from me?!"  
  
"To...destroy...you..."  
  
She gasped at the comment. She was taken aback, her right hand in a clentch. Who was this enemy? Why did it wanted to destroy her? She was only a meek, fraile child who was always ignored into the shadows at school and at parties.  
  
The one who held eternal silence.  
  
"Why?" she asked, her voice barely about a whisper to her bottled anger.  
  
"Because...of who...you are..."  
  
Was that really a reason? she wondered. She felt the world shift around her, mist swirling around her like she was the center of a storm. The scenery changed to a barren world, the sky smoke gray and red, the ground stained with blood and sweat. Rocks uplifted, as if the apocalypse had arrived wherever she was.   
  
Battle sounds could be heard from a distant.  
  
Hotaru clamboured over, tripping once in a while in the long purple skirt. The wind howled violently with sand coming up to her eyes, stinging them painfully. After a while walking, she felt her ankles ache from the knee-high boots she was wearing.   
  
I mustn't give up, she told herself.   
  
Crashes. Groans. Blasts of wind.  
  
The battle's nearby, she thought. I better keep low. She crouched down, making her spine complain, no doubt. It made it a little hard to breathe, but she progressed anyways.   
  
"---Engage!"  
  
What was that? Hotaru crept to a large boulder and peered over.  
  
A battle raged on. Two combatants, both ragged from battle, one floating in air and the other on the ground. The one floating was in some sort of senshi clothing, only more fancy, as if part of the royal guard or something. Longer hair than Hotaru, down to the shoulders. On the ground, a ravaged enemy, dark clothing and a deadly face was struck by a ball of purple light...  
  
Wasn't that my attack? she wondered.  
  
"You'll never win, Samurai of Silence," the ragged warrior said.  
  
"In your nightmares, Chaosis."  
  
Two things struck her at once. The first was the name Chaosis. The name was mentioned a couple of times during the battle and every time she heard the name, she shivered. The second thing was the woman's voice; it sounded so much like her.  
  
"We will see...Sailor Saturn."  
  
Hotaru gasped at the mention of her senshi name. This woman, floating in the air, was her? Where was she? Most importantly, when was she? Why was she brought here?  
  
Chaosis wasn't done. "You may have won this battle, but there is still a war to be fought. While we were fighting, the Negaverse invaded the Moon Kingdom with Queen Beryl leading the attack. Pity, the almighty Samurai of Silence isn't fighting the with other Outer Senshi or the other Inners. Pity, really." He laughed, and he was gone.  
  
Scene shifted, mist enveloping Hotaru.  
  
The battle on the Moon. The Inners were already down and the Outers had been gone. By the time her ancient self got to the battlefield, Queen Beryl had broken the link of hands between Mamoru and Usagi and Queen Serenity used the last of her power to send them all to the Earth, including the etheral Sailor Saturn. But before she was sent...  
  
"Saturn, you must realize that Chaosis will return."  
  
"I know, your Majesty."  
  
"If so, he will appear at a time when the world no longer knows who we are. He will strike at their hearts and the world will be shattered; the senshi cannot do it alone, let alone Prince Mamoru. You are the only one who can stand up to Chaosis...which is why I am delievering a star crystal with you, containing your excess powers. The others will know you as Sailor Saturn, Senshi of Silence and Destruction. But Chaosis and I shall know you as the Samurai of Silence, defender of the Good."  
  
Mist. Fade.  
  
So that's why I'm here, Hotaru thought, sulking. My true powers are emerging from this star crystal that Queen Serenity gave me. I am becoming the person I was before...and Chaosis wants me dead. It's my duty to not get killed and stop Chaosis from seeding the world with Chaos. I see now.  
  
She felt her body becoming heavier.  
  
I see now...  
  
  
~*End of Chapter 4*~   
What'dya think? R&R! 


	5. Consulting the Fire and the Gates of Tim...

Thsi is the next installment to the story. ^^ A little more talk in this story, but anyways, I'm sure you'll enjoy that. ^^ R&R!  
  
  
~*Consulting the Fire and the Gates of Time*~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
Gray. Mist. Blurry vision.  
  
"She's coming around," Ami said gently.  
  
"Bout time," Haruka said gruffly.  
  
Hotaru fluttered her eyes again. Faces were in front of her; Rei, Setsuna, Haruka, Ami, her father. She suddenly bolted up, suddenly regretting it for she felt a sudden swell of pain in her head. She rubbed her temples, ignoring their sudden acts of complaint.  
  
The star crystal...  
  
The Samurai of Silence...  
  
"How are you feeling, dear?" her father asked.  
  
I feel shaken head to toe, don't you see? she thought fiercely. I feel like the enemy is watching me and I feel helpless to do anything. "Much better," she replied softly, faintly. "Can I go home?"  
  
"Sure, honey."  
  
Hotaru weakly went to pick up her things, muttered the briefest of thanks and then made her way out, behind the tall figure of Dr. Tomeo. She avoided Haruka's hostile glare, Rei's weary concern, Setsuna's perplexed gaze and Ami's mild stare. She didn't want them to know...not now, anyways.  
She looked up to the night sky. The stars twinkled above their heads.  
Somewhere...the enemy lurked.  
  
Sooner or later, the enemy with bite.  
  
  
"Something is up," Haruka said as soon as she left. "I know it."  
  
Rei shook her head. "You know, you shouldn't be this angry bout it," she said gently, wearily. "It's not her fault. While she was unconscious, I felt something from her, something really strong. Like, her soul wasn't really here for a moment, and a surge of power. Her flame inside her just...got stronger."  
  
"This kid is more trouble than I thought," Haruka said sternly. "Could it be Mistress 9 again?"  
  
Ami looked dubious. "I certainly doubt it," she told her coolly. "I mean, Saturn did destroy her a long time ago. Besides, I certainly think that Hotaru is just getting her strenght back. She has become more active with every day passing. I think she's losing the weakness in herself. She is growing up."  
  
Haruka was still not buying it. "Still---"  
  
"Hotaru is faced with something greater than herself," Setsuna intervened softly. I think a part of her knows that she will be faced with this sooner or later." She shook her head. "A part of me wants to protect her from all this, but I'm afraid we can't help her this time."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Rei demanded. "She's still a young girl!"  
  
"So are we," Setsuna responded calmly. "But only she can face the challenge. Not even Sailor Moon can face the challenge for her. Hotaru is the only combatant who can face this devastating enemy, whether we like it or not."  
"Why?" Haruka demanded harshly. "Why her? Why not you, or me?"  
  
Setsuna sulked. "Because...she has the power to defeat the enemy."  
  
"Who told you this?" Ami asked.   
  
"Someone."  
  
"Who?" Haruka demanded.   
  
Setsuna did not respond. Silence fell upon them.   
  
"I think we better keep an eye on her," Rei suggested. "When that times comes and this mysterious enemy appears, the least we can do is defend ourselves, whether we can hurt this guy or not."  
  
They nodded in agreement.   
  
"Who'll tell Usagi and the others?" Ami asked.   
  
  
"Is there any way we can help Hotaru?" Setsuna asked.  
  
The figure glowed. "Maybe."  
  
Setsuna swallowed dryly, allowing her hair to fall over her forehead as she loosely took out the bun in her hair. "We have to know," she told it lightly. "If it depends on the fate of our future---"  
  
"She holds our fate."  
  
Setsuna frowned. Too vague. "Explain."  
  
"She carries a pocket or immense value, something that will be the key to all that has been kept in the silence for eons. She is trapped in the circle, and if she wins, she will break the chains of the circle. If not, the circle will burn and all will perish. We will enter the age of Chaos."  
  
Setsuna's nose wrinkled. "Does a name Chaosis mean anything?"  
  
Pause. Ah-hah!  
  
"Chaosis' is Hotaru's problem. You must ensure that you will defend everything else that will distract the battle."  
  
"That isn't an answer."  
  
"Minions will appear to test you. Be prepared."  
  
The light died, leaving Setsuna to her thoughts.  
  
  
"Rin, pyou, tou, sha, kai, jin, retsu, sai, zen. Akuryou taisan!" she cried as she tried to read the fire. After a while with nothing coming up, she abruptly slammed her bolted fists to the padded floors, crying, "Oh, Fire, give me an explanation. What is going on with Hotaru?"  
  
The fire clackled.   
  
Mist. Gray.  
  
Two combatants, both in armour, standing in a battle-ridden zone. One with long black hair, a girl floating in the air. Another one, on the ground, looking evilly up to the flying warrior, dark and evil. The sky a gray and red colour.  
  
Mist. Gray. Shift.  
  
The sky clashed with lightning against the dark sky. In the middle of the dark sky opened up in the sky and light came down, spiralling. Someone was being lifted to the sky in a choir of light. Rei couldn't see the person, but she knew it was one of the combatants. Short black hair, teenager....  
  
"Ho---"  
  
Mist. Gray. Shift.  
  
Two great forces. She could feel in in her soul, in the darkest part of her soul. One side gave her all that was chaotic inside of her, and the other side was all that was silent in her. Opposites completely.   
  
"Silence...Sphere---"  
  
Mist. Gray. Shift.  
  
Fire clackling. Rei blinked. She felt a cold pack dab on her forehead and on her cheek. She was sweating mad as she looked up to see Yuuichiru over her, his bangs facing her, and for that rare instant, she saw his eyes.   
"Rei...are you okay?"   
  
Those eyes...so compelling...  
  
"Uh, yah. Sorry...I must've got a heat wave or something." She pulled herself to a sitting position, with help from Yuuichiru. She rubbed her head. "How did you know I was down?"  
  
He laughed, obviously embaressed. "I was going to give you some tea," he said meekly, "because I knew you'd be up tonight. Then I saw you lying down on the floor like that, so I got some things in."  
  
"Oh, thank you, Yuuichiru." She gave him another reassuring smile before he mumbled the briefest of excuses and left her to her thoughts.Rei turned to the fire. The fire, it beholded her the secret...but what could it all mean? She would have to ask someone sooner or later.  
  
Silence.  
  
Mist.   
  
Gray.  
  
Shift.  
  
The star crystal.  
  
The armour.  
  
"Chao...sis..."  
  
"Ho..ta...ru..."  
  
Chaosis' face.  
  
Hotaru awoke with a startle, her face filmed with sweat. The covers were thrown down as she was welcomed by the silence of her room and the dimness of the lamps. She was breathing heavily, as she sighed and looked around, her eyes aching to the soreness.  
  
Swords clashing.  
  
"...to me, you are the Samurai of Silence."  
  
A star crystal.  
  
Hotaru clutched her temples. What is going on with me? she cried inwardly.   
Suddenly, she felt something come to her in her mind. It was faint for mist and gray was in her mind, but then it cleared. She saw a terribly force rocking somewhere...out there...  
Chaosis...she rumbled ominously.  
  
She felt something deep inside of her awaken, somehow. She could feel the power take over her body, a strange energy coming from her heart, through her body, to the tips of her fingers and toes.   
  
Silence.  
  
I will get you, Chaosis, she thought as she felt her own transformation from the ordinary Hotaru to the silent senshi, Sailor Saturn. Even if it means my end....  
  
~*End of Chapter 5*~  
What do u think? R&R! 


	6. The Rebirth of a Samurai

Here's the next part of the story. ^^ I hope you enjoy it. You know the drill, these wonderful characters do not belong to me. Please, R&R! ^^ Enjoy!  
  
~*The Rebirth of a Samurai*~  
~*Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos*~  
  
Light filled the room.  
  
"Chao...sis...I...will...get...you..." Hotaru mumbled as the light washed over her body. She felt like she wasn't there anymore, that she was floating. She felt the power overwhelm her as she looked up. Her ceiling was no longer there, and instead, she saw the sky. It was dark, the brink of dawn, and she saw a gate above her. It was glowing an eerie purple, and she could only see the briefest at the other side.  
  
She knew what she had to do.   
  
"Hotaru?"  
  
She turned to the door. She knew who it was; her father. The light must have awaken him. Oh no, she thought, he mustn't know!  
  
"Hotaru, are you okay?"  
  
Be still, Hota---She felt a sudden surge as she gritted. Memories were tumbling into her mind, as she felt something from her heart suddenly dash out, making her yelp in surprise.  
  
"Hotaru! Hotaru, open the door!" her father shouted from outside.  
  
She turned to the door. "No, no! Don't! Stay away!"  
  
"Hotaru, please!" her father insisted. "Open the door. What's wrong?"  
  
She shook her head as she looked down at her chest. She saw that she was no longer in her night clothes but in a suit, much like the one in her dream. Before her, she saw the crytal seed that was given to her by Queen Serenity herself. What was the name she was given?   
  
The Samurai of Silence.   
  
Meanwhile, her father was beating his fist on the door. "Hotaru!"  
  
She turned. Oh, dear father, she thought. I will be gone for some quite time, please, do not worry about me. I will be okay. As soon as I defeat my formidable foe who has caused so much trouble. She casted her eyes up at the sky, where the gate awaited.  
  
Her father finally got the keys after stumbling to his room to get it. He desperately twisted every key till he got the right one which opened his daughter's room. He swung the door open and light poured into his vision. But something really got him panicked.  
  
She was gone.  
  
  
Setsuna's eyes snapped open from her sleep and was welcomed by the dimmness of the room. Judging by the darkness outside, it was still night, at the brink of dawn.  
  
Something was wrong. And Setsuna knew what it was.  
  
She bolted off from her bed and hurried.  
  
  
Rei awoke to the sound of her ravens outside. She groaned as she got off her bed and rubbed her eyes with the hilt of her palm. Normally, the ravens, Phoboes and Demios didn't caw so much early in the morning.   
  
Then again, with the life she's led, anything could happen.  
  
She pulled on her priestess outfit and sleepily walked outside. It was at the brink of dawn, a light starting to spread across the horizon. There, on the tree nearby, was her two ravens, cawing uncontrollably.   
  
"What's wrong?" she asked sleepily.  
  
The kept cawing and looking at a certain direction. She turned and saw a bright star flashing in the early morning sky. At first, she thought she was losing it, but she blinked, rubbed her eyes, and looked out again. Sure enough, the star was still there, shining all too brightly.  
  
"What is going on?" she demanded.   
  
Suddenly, it struck her. Silence. Chaos. It was all beginning.  
  
"Hotaru!!!!!"  
  
  
"Rei, really!" Usagi whined as she trudged along in her pink sweater and long green pants. "Y'know, my parents will be freaked when they find out that I've left so early without telling them. And I was having a dream about Darien!!!" She sulked.   
  
Minako leaned over at Usagi. "Was it good?"  
  
"Uh-huh!" Usagi nodded.   
  
Ami shook her head, still weary from studying up late last night. "Rei must have a good reason for calling us this early in the morning," she said, yawning as she clamboured about in her blue outfit.   
  
Makoto nodded silently in agreement.   
  
"Hey, look, over there!" Usagi cried, pointing up ahead. "There's Setsuna, Michiru and Haruka! I wonder what they're doing at the front of Rei's home!" She sped up to meet up with the older senshi. "Setsuna! Michiru! Haruka! What are you doing here?"  
  
Haruka didn't want to talk much, and Usagi could see by the crossed arms and the face to the ground, but Setsuna nodded wisely and said calmly, "Good. I was hoping that Rei would call for you."  
  
Usagi blinked.   
  
"Setsuna called us early this morning," Michiru explained gently, her hair up in a sleepy ponytail, in a silk aqua blouse and a matching skirt. "She said that something happened out here, somewhere, and it has to do with Hotaru." She shook her head. "Poor girl...I hope she's okay."  
  
"So why are we here, then?" Makoto asked. "Why not at Hotaru's house?"  
  
"Because, I want you to look up there!" The group turned to see Rei running down the stairs from her temple, in the priestess outfit she was in earlier. She was in a frantic hurry, running and pointing up to the sky. They looked up, and there, they saw the star flashing.  
  
Ami took out her little computer gizmo and started typing. "That's odd," she said after a moment. "My computer dosen't recognize this thing up there. I'm guessin it's a star, but it says it's not. The readings are off the scale! It's unbelievable."  
  
"Where is the thing hovering over?" Michiru asked.  
  
Tap, tap, tap. "It's over---the Tomeo residence."  
  
"That's where Hotaru lives!" Minako shouted. "Something's up! I can feel it!"  
Setsuna and Rei suddenly felt a sensation in their minds, something that gave them a sudden urgency to go. Without any announcement, they just started running down the street.   
  
"Rei!" Usagi shouted. "Where are you going? Rei----!"  
  
"Setsuna---" Michiru cried after them.  
  
Without thinking, Makoto and Minako started running. Then Haruka followed their lead before Ami, Michiru and Usagi followed, and at that point, Rei and Setsuna were way ahead.   
  
"Rei, are you getting this feeling?" Setsuna asked.   
  
"If I didn't, I wouldn't be here right now," she responded breathlessly.  
  
The Tomeo Residence was silent when they arrived. Ami was right, the bright thing was up there, and sure enough, it wasn't a star. Rei couldn't even begin to think what it was, but it wasn't a sphere. It was sort of flat and was in purple. "What is that?" she asked out loud.  
  
"It's a portal," Setsuna responded. "To where, I don't know."  
  
"Let's go in, I guess," Rei said nervously, as she went up for the door. She was about to knock, when the door just opened. She was taken aback slightly, to be greeted by a solemn silence. "Um, I guess we're welcomed."  
  
They stepped into the house. It was deadly quiet.   
  
"Anyone home?" Rei asked meekly.   
  
"Hmm...we must find Hotaru," Setsuna said calmly.  
  
They heard an anguish cry.  
  
"Upstairs!" Setsuna shouted.   
  
They trekked upstairs to find a room with its doors wide open, light pouring in. They peered from the door to see a strange purple light lighting up the dark bedroom. And at the center, looking upward, was Mr. Tomeo, Hotaru's father.   
  
"Mr. Tomeo!" Rei said, surprised.  
  
He turned. "Hino. Meioh. You've got to help Hotaru!"  
  
Setsuna blinked in mild confusion. "Mr. Tomeo, what are you talking about?"  
  
"My Hotaru---she's vanished to another world!"   
  
~End of Book 6*~  
What do u think? Btw, don't try copying this story (cuz i got copyrights, too!). Just making sure. Anywayz, R&R! 


	7. Travel through Time and Space

Here's the next chapter. ^^ Things are starting to shape here, and you're coming close to the end of this mystery and battle! I hope you enjoy it!  
  
  
~*Travel through Time and Space*~  
~*Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos*~  
  
"Another world?" Rei repeated.  
  
Mr. Tomeo nodded frantically. "Yes, yes! My daughter...she's in another world. You've got to help her, you've got to! She's all alone, oh dear, I hope she's all right---"  
  
"Calm down, Mr. Tomeo," Setsuna said calmly. "What happened?"  
  
He rubbed his forehead, trying to think. "I don't really know," he responded softly. "I was having a nightmare. Some really dark dream. It was horrible. There were two combatants battling each other in this barren battlefield.   
Then I saw Hotaru's face cross in my dream. I woke up and decided to check up on her. Then I saw the light coming from below the door, and I tried to open the door. It couldn't. By the time I could, she was gone, and there was this gate on her ceiling." He pointed upward to where the purple disk was, the other side covered with gray mist.  
  
"Just like the dream," Rei murmured.  
  
"Did Hotaru tell you anything?" Setsuna asked.   
  
"She just kept saying for me to stay away," he replied shakily. "You see, I heard her scream---"  
  
"Scream?" Setsuna echoed.  
  
"Yes, scream. It was horrible. It was as if something was changing her..."  
"Hmm, we're going to hve to think this through," Setsuna said softly, turning to Rei. "We must talk to the others about this."  
  
Rei nodded, turning back to Mr. Tomeo, who still sat on the floor with a fearful expression. The poor man...losing his daughter with such a surprise...she felt sorry for him. "We'll be back, mr. Tomeo, with help," she said assuringly. "Don't worry, we'll get Hotaru back."  
  
They walked out of the room.  
  
"This is serious," Setsuna said as they walked down the staircase. "The gate is weird enough...but Hotaru screaming? Something is wrong here, something is terribly wrong." She frowned slightly. "This is a very strange mystery, Rei. Very strange. And Hotaru is the mystery. She is as she was; a complete mystery." She shook her head. "The poor child."  
  
Rei sighed as she walked side by side with the time senshi. "I agree," she responded. "This is getting weird. And it all has to do with the dark guy we battled yesterday. Something about Chaosis or something---but didn't we already defeat Sailor Chaos?"  
  
"There may be another one, stronger than it."  
  
"Hmm, I suppose---Usagi! What took you so long?!" Rei shouted by the door.  
Setsuna sweat-dropped. Talk about change in personality, she thought.  
  
Usagi scowled, folding her arms. "Not my fault! You run too fast!"  
  
"Yah, well you should run faster!"  
  
Sweat drops.  
  
"Look, someone has to stay here and watch Mr. Tomeo," Setsuna told them.  
  
"I can stay behind," Minako volunteered.  
  
"So will I," Michiru responded gently.  
  
Haruka turned to Michiru. "Michiru---"  
  
"I will be okay," she told her bravely. "The warriors will need a strong soul, someone who won't give up amidst the battle." She smiled kindly and touched her elbow gently. "You must help the other senshi whether you like it or not, Haruka. The firefly is spreading her wings and she needs a wind... go now. Be strong."  
  
Haruka nodded slowly. "Fine then, if that is what you wish."  
  
"We must hurry," Rei intervened. "Hotaru is in another dimension and she needs our help, fast!!! Usagi!"  
  
"Right!" She raised her hand. "Moon...Cosmic Power...Make-Up!"  
  
"Mercury...Star...Make-up!"  
  
"Jupiter...Star...Make-up!"  
  
"Mars...Star...Make-up!"  
  
"Uranus...Planet...Make-up!"  
  
"Pluto...Planet...Make-up!"  
  
After transforming gracefully into the senshi they were, Pluto and Mars led the others up the stairs of the Tomeo residence to enter the portal, leaving Miyako and Michiru standing at the front of the house, looking up to the sky, where the star loomed.   
  
"Will they make it out, Michiru?" Miyako asked.   
  
"For their sakes, I certainly hope so," Michiru responded sadly.   
  
Inside Hotaru's room, Mars pointed to the ceiling like it was a survivor from the Titanic. "There it is!" she cried. "The portal! We must get through quickly! I sence trouble."  
  
"No doubt about it," Uranus told them roughly. "I sence a strangeness."  
"Now, wait a minute, you guys," Mercury said cautiously. "This might be a trap. We don't know what's beyond that portal, you know."  
  
"We are senshi," Uranus snapped. "It's in our duty to face those dangers."   
Moon looked at Mercury. "I agree with you Mercury, but now is not the time to check. Hotaru is in danger!"  
  
"Whoever this Chaosis is, he's making Hotaru draw to him...or it," Mars told them. "Whatever his plans are, Hotaru must have sensed that they aren't for our benefits. There's a sense of destruction in all this, something---"  
  
Pluto suddenly remembered something, something that she shouldn't have. Her eyes widened, though the others didn't notice for they were too busy worrying about the danger that lay ahead of them. No, she thought to herself, it cannot be! Not again! No, no, no!  
  
Without thinking, she leaped and disappeared in the portal.  
  
"Setsuna!" Moon cried.   
  
"Pluto!" Uranus roared.  
  
Mars looked up, where Pluto had disappeared. She must've sense some kind of danger...or maybe a clue to this peculiar puzzle, she thought. I must find the answer as well. She then leaped and disappeared.  
  
"Where does she think she's going?!" Mercury demanded.   
  
"To save Hotaru," Jupiter responded, following them in.  
  
Mercury sighed heavily. "Why isn't anyone listening?" She then followed in behind an eagar Uranus and a concerned Moon.  
  
One by one, the senshi appeared in a strange scenery. They stood on a cliff facing flat land, meters below. On the side, jagged rocks were seen with other cliffs such as the ones that they stood on. There was rarely any vegetation here, only brown and grays of the sand, dirt and rock. Amidst it was marble columns, fallen over by age across the flat soil. The sky was an odd purple-grayish-blue, with faint clouds. Amidst the sunlit sky, there were three moons, close to each other, as if revolving around each other, held in position up in the sky.   
  
"It's so...beautiful," Moon awed.   
  
"I never saw something so...amazing in my life," Jupiter said softly.   
  
Mercury tapped in her computer gizmo.  
  
Uranus breathed in softly. "Where are we?"  
  
"The Kingdom of Saturn."  
  
They turned to see Pluto look to a distance, holding her delicate time staff, her hair played by the wind.   
  
Moon turned to Mercury. "Well?! Is she right?!"  
  
Mercury looked up to the other piercing eyes. "My computer clearly states that we are no longer on Earth," she responded hotly. "Yet it still shows that we are still in our solar system---"  
  
"It's a simple yes or no, ice senshi," Uranus snapped.  
  
"Yes, we are on Saturn," she finished.  
  
"Why are we on Saturn? Is this where the portal led us?" Jupiter asked.  
  
"Maybe Pluto can answer that question," Mercury said pointedly.   
  
The eyes went to Pluto again. Again, they saw nothing in her face. Finally, Pluto sighed, licking her lips. "Yes, this is the renassaince of the Satrun Kingdom. This is where the final battle will begin."  
  
~*End of Chapter*~  
What do you think? Sorry if I made Mercury/Ami so snobby. I'll change that (hopefully) in the next chapter. I'm trying to add some more talking and a little more action with Jupiter/Makoto. She seems to silent here. Anyways, R&R! 


	8. Miraged Encounters

Here's my next chapter! It's finally up, so here's the continuation. More mysteries are introduced as well as some explanations. Read on! You know the drill...  
  
  
Miraged Encounters  
~*Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos*~  
  
"What are you talking about, Pluto?" Makoto asked. "I mean, how could we have been transported from Earth all the way to Saturn without any announcement of any power or something? How come we can breathe here anyhow? I thought Saturn was high on hydrogen and helium!" When Pluto didn't reply, she raised an eyebrow and folded her arms stubbornly and glared at Mercury. "Well? Well?"  
  
Mercury looked down at her computer, tapping away.  
  
The wind blew as they looked out to the scenery again.  
  
"We must find Hotaru," Moon said softly. "We must."  
  
Uranus only glared at the moon senshi.  
  
"I think I've got it, you guys," Mercury said after a moment. "The portal in Hotaru's room was a gateway of time and space linking her place to this shambled place on Saturn. Because she is the senshi of this planet, there was bound to be a connection." She shook her head. "I told you guys to watch where you were going."  
  
"Sorry, we were in a rush," Uranus stated simply.  
  
Mercury huffed angrily. "Well, anyways, I think we might as well look---"  
"Where's Mars?!" Usagi shrieked. They turned to her with a startle to see Moon trembling with her knuckles to her mouth. "She was here just a minute ago! Ooooh...why did we have to go here? I know we had to find Hotaru, but this planet is freaking me out!!!!!"  
  
Sweat drops.  
  
They split up looking for both Hotaru and Sailor Mars. Jupiter went with Moon, Pluto with Uranus and Mercury went by herself since she was getting annoyed enough by the other senshi.   
  
"I see something!" Jupiter hollered from some jagged rocks forming themselves into some sort of shelf. "It's faint, but I think, I think---Rei? What the---"  
  
Mars looked up from the rocks, ragged and dirt-ridden. "I found her."  
  
A moment later, they were all together. Uranus and Jupiter came about to help Mars carry the limp body of Hotaru out of the rocks where she was hiding. They placed her in the open ground, to see that she was in strange clothing like a senshi uniform, but not.   
  
Pluto stroked some hair tendrils out of her forehead. "Poor child."  
  
"What was she doing in there?" Jupiter asked curiously, bending down to examine the girl. "She looked like she just came out of a fight."  
  
"She probably did," Pluto said faintly.   
  
Uranus glared at Pluto. "You know, Pluto," she said snidely, "Apparently, you're the one who knows what is going on. We don't. We're sure as heck don't. So maybe it's time to actually start explaining. It would be nice." She folded her arms as a conclusion.   
  
Pluto sighed, looking down at Hotaru and then up at the other senshi. "Alright," she responded. "I will tell you. Back when we battled the dark enemy yesterday, it kept saying Chaosis. By the way it said it, I wasn't sure what it was talking about until I saw the portal and you were talking about destruction."  
  
"So who is Chaosis?" Mercury asked.  
  
"The ultimate opposite of Silence," Pluto replied gravely. "Yes, we battled Chaos during the battle with Galaxia, but Chaosis is more powerful than Chaos. Chaos was like his instrument of eternal sovereign in the universe."  
  
"Why Silence?" Jupiter pressed.   
  
"Because that is what stops Chaos," she said. "A long time ago, during the time of the Silver Millenium, Saturn's job was not only to be princess and represent her planet in your court, Sailor Moon. Her job was also to stop the terrible dangers from ever influencing our solar system. She made a lot of enemies, mind you, because of her duty and the love of life. She, in a way, was like our protector, protector from Chaos.   
  
"Chaosis was her greatest nemesis, a powerful one, her opposite. During the time that Queen Serenity held the ball and the Negaverse approached, Saturn was in battle. I remember her send a courier to you, Moon, saying that she was unable to attend the ball. Oh, how she wanted to see you and the prince so very much...but she went off to battle."  
  
Uranus nodded slowly. "What were the results?"  
  
"The battle was halfway when she got a communique...from me...that the Negaverse had attacked. She had no time to destroy Chaosis...and as I initially recall, she only locked him out of our world."  
  
"He must have weakened the bonds somehow," Mercury supposed. "Or Hotaru wasn't strong enough to do a permanent bond. Either way, she must have thrown him into the Negaverse or something so deep, we probably won't be able to figure it out."  
  
"Now that he's out, what are we going to do?" Moon asked.   
  
"Nothing." They turned to see Mars standing by the boulder nearby. Her hair was floating in the air as she turned to the others. "That's right; my visions. They told me that we can do nothing at this point; this is simply her battle and hers alone, as was Sailor Moon's when she battled Queen Beryl. We just can't do anything for her."  
  
"This is just great," Uranus muttered. "We entered here for no reason?"  
  
"It appears so," Jupiter said. "Hey, she's waking up!"  
  
Hotaru groaned as she started to stir from where she lay. She then sat up, much to Pluto's distress, rubbing her eyelids and blinking.   
  
"Hotaru, take it easy," Pluto said gently.   
  
But she wasn't. Her eyes were wide open and alert, darting about here and there like mad. She wasn't focusing on anything, but on everything as she got to her feet despite the others' protests.   
  
"What's up with her?" Moon demanded.  
  
"Something's wrong," Rei said immediately. "There's an evil presence in the air. I can feel it."  
  
The others were up and alert now. Pluto was walking about catiously with her Time Staff at hand as was Uranus with her Space Sword. Mercury finally put away her computer gizmo as Jupiter prowled around, searching for some sign of the enemy. Moon was still shaking.   
  
"I don't like this dream," Moon whined. "Can we go home now?"  
  
The others ignored her.  
  
Moon scowled, grumbling, "Baka-somos. All to busy thinking that there's something up---up---up---oh, hi," she said shyly at a tall man in black who just appeared behind her. He was clad in rich clothing, his raven hair drawn back, such intense eyes and complextion. It made her swoon while a part of her was scolding, No! Remember Mamoru?  
  
The man grinned. "Konnichiwa," he said politely in a rich, tenor voice. "You don't happen to be Queen Serenity, now are you?"  
  
He knows who I am! "Why, yes!"  
  
He sighed. "Hmmm, how very interesting," he said richly. "I have heard so much about you. You know, you deserve a lot of attention, y'know. Being Queen and all...you don't have to be treated like dirt like the others do. You deserve to be treated like the Queen you are..."  
  
Moon smiled smugly. She definitely liked this guy!  
  
"What is that?!" Jupiter cried from where she stood, looking down. "How cute!" She picked up the stubby little puppy, who was drooling and giving her puppy eyes. "I always wanted a puppy!"  
  
Soon the other senshi were too busy looking at incredulous things that just magically appeared; Moon and the handsome dark man, Jupiter with a cute puppy, Mercury with a high-speed laptop, Mars with a box filled with music and barnotes, Uranus and the latest motorcycle she was dying to bye and Pluto with an extensive array of wardrobes. Everyone was too busy to see Hotaru walk away into the rubble.   
  
Silence loomed over...  
  
Hotaru could no longer hear the other senshi gabbering away.  
  
A figure slowly walked through the mist of the ruins around them. It was only the two of them in a strange sort of way as Hotaru slowly began to feel her power rise as well as her blood and nervousness. The skirt fluttered in the wind as did her hair as the stranger became visible to her dark lavender eyes.  
  
It was a guy, with dark hair that reached his ears. He had a calm expression, muscular in frame, clad in black, pitch black, everything matching. He carried a metal staff in his right hand and his complextion was pale yet powerful. His gray eyes fell upon hers.  
  
Hotaru felt a shiver go down her spine, as if the man was looking directly to her very soul. She felt as if she knew those eyes, those very eyes, as if she knew them all her life.   
  
"Princess," he said from his perfect mouth, "it's been a long time."  
  
~*End of Book 8*~  
What do you think? ^^ Could the hot dude be Chaosis? And why does Hotaru feel like she knew him all her life? Ooohh...dum-dum-dum-dum (hahaha, my friend and I like doin that). Please R&R! 


	9. In the Circle of the Battlefield

Here's the nineth installement of the story. ^^ It took some sense, but lemme tell you, I think at the end of the March Break, this will be completed. Anyways, read and review!  
  
~*In the Circle of the Battlefield*~  
~The Apocalypse of Silence and Chaos~  
  
"Wh-Who are you?" Hotaru asked nervously.   
  
The man was now close to her range, and she could almost smell whatever cologne he was wearing. He was surprisingly her age, only with a strange look on his face that made her look older.   
  
"Don't you remember me, Princess?" he asked calmly.  
  
She blinked. "Am I supposed to?" she countered back.  
  
He shook his head and tsked. "I supposed the Reincarnation really did blur your memory. Think back, Princess, think back a long time ago, this place, this world, that time, a long, long time ago..."  
  
  
***Flashback***  
"Tell the Princess and her Majesty that I cannot attend," Hotaru said softly from the terrace, where her palace glimmered in architecture. It was turning night as from the sky, the holy rings were slightly visible in the horizon. The palace was situated in the northern hemisphere from the rings, but it gave view to some of the moons revolving the planet.   
  
"Anything else, your Highness?"  
  
"No, that will be all. Thank you---"  
  
Gray.   
  
Mist.   
  
Shift.  
  
A man, brushing his hand against her pale complextion. Hotaru gasped is surprise when she found out who the person was---it was Chaosis himself. He was in a neat suit of black, latest fashion in the Imperial Kingdom. He was smiling charmingly, which didn't make him look like a bad guy.  
  
Hotaru's past self was in a long flowing gown of lavender, her hair down as always, her neck adorned with crystals. Her eyes were so calm as she looked straight at him without a flinch or concern. She blinked and turned away to face her kingdom.  
  
"You know I can never join you, Chaosis, you and I both know that," she said calmly, tersely. "You can plead and flatter me for all eternity and you still won't win me. We are on opposite ends of the playing board; who will win, I cannot know..."  
  
"Princess," he cooed. "You can taunt me all you like, but we are destined---"  
  
"To what? Fight for all eternity?" she snapped, turning towards him.   
  
"Maybe," he said cautiously, cocking his head to one side, savouring in the beauty of Hotaru's risen temper. This past Hotaru was somewhat different from the one she knew. "Or something much greater..."  
  
She scoffed. "Your strategy is tiring me," she said dryly. "Leave me if you love your life for I have no time for your sentimental fantasies..."  
  
Gray.   
  
Mist.   
  
Shift.  
  
The battle scene. Hotaru could remember asking her imperial guards to evacuate the planet and send them to the moons for protection, some to the other planets near by. Her past self was now standing in a cleared out battlefield, the columns now shattered by the fight.   
  
Before her was Chaosis, the form he was now, only more coloured. He was no longer in the suit, but in a more warrior suit. Hotaru's past self was in the ancient senshi suit she saw in her vision as she was fighting breathlessly and passionately with her glaive.   
  
"I'm giving you a chance to join me, Princess! Why don't you understand?"  
  
"Because as much as you want to believe you can make me love you, I can't! We believe in something else, and believe it or not, they don't run the same path! You are my nemesis, my opposite! You make chaos out of this universe, turning people against each other. I must make right what you made wrong!" she finished passionately.   
  
I love it when she gets all passionate of her cause, he thought to himself. It's a shame though she's on the side of silence...her powers could be useful to me. Oh well, you can't have everything. "There's always the Moon Princess..." he said harshly.  
  
"She has her own battles to face!" she cried back, waving her deadly glaive in her hands. "As for you---you're battle is with me!"  
  
"Oh, Princess, I only wish---"  
  
Gray.   
  
Mist.  
  
Shift.  
  
"Princess! Please!" A gateway was behind him, looming, opening its mouth with void waiting behind his weary and wild body. He was scarred all over the place, his hair messy now and his eyes wild with fear and desperation. Deception and craftiness. "We can work this out, I know we can---"  
  
"I'm sorry, but you are Chaosis," was all she could say. As much as she hated what she was to do, as much as she wanted to show mercy, she could not let go of the cruelties he had inflicted to the universe as a whole. Everything was difficult. "I cannot let you get away so easily...Silence...Sphere..."  
  
"Princess, please, listen to---"  
  
"...Engage!!!!"  
  
"Ai------------"  
  
All Sailor Saturn could do was stand dumbfold at why he said "Ai" as she watched him float into the hole she had opened, still shouting with all his might as she watched the gateway slowly close itself.   
  
"Ai------------"  
  
Then, the Negaverse appeared.  
  
***End of Flashback***  
  
  
Hotaru was now trembling at what she saw and experienced because of two things. First, her past self was so much stronger than she was now, phsically and mentally. She was more passionate of what she believed in and sought to fight for it. And second was that Chaosis was totally getting into her. Now she was filled with doubt and a thin veil of fear.  
  
"Now you see, Princess?" he asked calmly. "You trapped me, yet I escaped. You refuse, yet I insist. I return, and so will you."  
  
She turned defiantly at him, now back in control. She had to continue what she fought for before and for the future. Besides, his smug attitude was really ticking her off. "Yes, I have returned, only to find out that things like you followed us Senshi to this century," she replied. "Now I must finish what I had sough to do before...finish you off!!!"  
  
His mouth snarled as his face crimpled visibly. Then he sighed and regained his complextion. "You haven't lost your passion, Princess," he said snidely. "But I'm afraid I've gone stronger since we last had our little dance..."  
  
"Fine by me. I've gotten stronger too."  
  
Oh, that hit the spot. Now he was getting angry. "You are testing my patience, Princess---"  
  
"The name's Hotaru, and I will stop you!"  
  
Light blasted from the heavens and washed her whole as she appeared as Sailor Saturn, but not Sailor Saturn. She was in a partial-senshi outfit, but she was in a long robe to top her outfit, a long, dark purple one, with silver lining. Her face had the tiara, but the stone had the Saturn insignia as her earrings jingled as she moved. Her gloves ran up to her mid-biceps as her right hand clutched her precious glaive. Her eyes were still wide but now she showed a different expression in her eyes...they were much more stronger and darker than previous.   
  
Chaosis was gaping. "How---what---"  
  
"I am the Samurai of Silence," she proclaimed. "The guardian and princess of this planet. I hold the horrible weapon of destruction with the promise of rebirth...and you are my enemy. I will stop you from polluting chaos throughout the universe." She narrowed her eyes. "I will defeat you."  
  
Chaosis now recovered his expression as he smiled smarily. "You think you can defeat me, Samurai?" he asked arrogantly. "You're just as talkative as your senshi friends over there! Too much talk, no room for fighting! A bunch of pacifists! You are ruining my ultimate plan! Hmm...nonetheless, I got the upper hand on this---Princess." The word "princess" came out in a snarl.   
So there was his true colours, she mused, but watched in stupefied horror as her friends began to scream. The puppy Jupiter was holding attacked her visciously as Uranus started running for her life as the motorcycle strangely came to life. Mercury was now intwined in the computer and was struggling as Pluto watched the clothes come to life and attack her. Mars was now being chased by wild flames as Moon was screaming as the dark guy was chasing her.  
  
"Stop it! Your battle is with me!" Hotaru cried.  
  
Chaosis laughed. "I missed to watch the battle last time because of what you did to me," he stated coldly. "This time, they can take part to the wonderous things I've thought up. Brilliant, huh?" He wagged his eyebrows arrogantly.   
  
Hotaru scoffed. "Sicko!" She lunged forward with her glaive upfront to an offensive position, trying to stab the black-hearted minion with the tip. He was caught by surprise as he dodged, the tip slicing into his bicep, making a long, thin cut, oozing with blood.   
  
"You little bi---"  
  
"Hotaru!" Mars shouted as she leapt from a boulder to a smaller boulder. "Be careful! He's crafty and he'll do---"  
  
"Shut up, fire senshi," Chaosis snarled and waved his arm, throwing Mars to a sharp end of the boulder. She crumpled to the floor with dust billowing from her silent body.  
  
"Sailor Mars!" Hotaru cried but was cut off as she was punched at the cheekbone by Chaosis. She stumbled back, losing her balance, feeling a fiery bruise on her cheek. It was painful and she winced slightly, turning back to the brash Chaosis with a new vengeance. "Aaaaghhhh!" she cried as she lunged again, fist first.  
  
Her fist hit his face, pounding him hard back.   
  
So the battle for the future began.  
  
~*End of Book 9*~  
What do you think? Yes, I'm climbing to the climax, and all shall be revealed and resolved. Please R&R! 


	10. Desperate Times Calls for Desperate Meas...

Here's the 10th installment to the story. ^^ Hope you enjoy it. Please R&R... these characters do not belong to me 'cept Chaosis. ^^  
  
~*Desperate Moments Calls for Desperate Actions*~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
"Let me gooooooooooo!" Sailor Moon wailed as she squirmed at the grasp of the dark man, who was now snarling, his arms around the slim body of the princess. Her long hair bobbed as she desperately tried to loosen the strong grip. She spitted, she stomped, she squealed and screeched but he wouldn't budge. "Wait till Mamoru finds out, he'll---"  
  
"Help! Help!" Mercury cried from a short distance. She was being pulled into a computer laptop, its screen turned to a dark hole that would suck the ice senshi whole. She was gritting her teeth and struggling, but she could make no attack.   
  
Jupiter was being chased by what was the puppy, now grown to a size of a tiger with snarling, sharp teeth, dark fur and eyes so piercing, it scared anyone. She was jumping here and there, using her thunder and earth attacks, but the dog was equally determined to bite her down to size.   
  
Fire circled Mars as she desperately tried to get out the ring.  
  
Uranus was too busy trying to outwit a motorcycle.   
  
Pluto was fighting phantoms with her Time Staff.  
  
Everyone was too busy to fixate their concerns to Moon, who was too busy trying to get out of the man's grip. Her head suddenly jolted above; Hotaru! Everyone was so busy with the nuisances that they were unaware that Hotaru was already in combat with someone.  
  
Moon shivered. Chaosis.   
  
Saturn lunged, dashed, dodged and ducked as she desperately tried to go offensive. But Chaosis wouldn't let her, and made her fall back defensive. It was a tactic; it all was, making her fall into weariness and tiredness so he could launch a major assult. She had to end the battle---fast, before her body gives out on her.  
  
She dashed out her glaive, but it clanged with his dark rod.  
  
"Give it up, Samurai," he hissed. "You can never win!"  
  
"We'll see about---that!!!!" She leaped again, glaive out, the tip facing him. She then swung across, but he got the message and ducked, her glaive missing him by the hairs, as he stuck out his rod. Seeing this rapid movement, she leapt in the air, making a somersault and then landing---in air. Strange but it worked.  
  
  
They turned around quickly, facing each other, hands on their weapons.   
  
"You catch on quickly," he complimented in a neutral tone.  
  
Two can play that game. "They don't put me in a gifted school for nothing."  
  
"Well, did they teach you---this!!!" He lunged out, as if a sword fight, the tip of his staff a pointed spear. She dodged back as she missed the tip of the staff from her belly. She whirled around, glaive out, and aimed square at his head. She slammed him with the smooth edge of the glaive.  
  
"Curses," she said beneath her breath.  
  
Pluto was visciously slicing and dicing the phantomed articles of clothing with her Time Staff. This is incredibly odd, she thought through breaths as she fought continously. Phantoms and fire...this is incredibly off charts. Hmm...this is to keep us off the main battle? I wonder---  
  
Mars was fighting the fire, her face dripping with sweat. This fire was not the normal fire she dealt with day in day out. This was a chaotic fire, a fire that was not a very pleasant one and did not welcome her presence. Nonetheless, she would conquer it. "Fire...fire of Mars...hear me heed! Seperate, get away! Go under my power!"  
  
No response.  
  
This is going to be harder than I thought, she thought ruefully.   
  
Jupiter was still being chased by the viscious dog. She gritted her teeth so hard, she was going to grind them off her gums. Nothing seemed to be working, and this was what was ticking her off completely.   
  
"Jupiter...Oak...Evolution!"  
  
Nothing. She was ready to kill it bare hands.   
  
"C'mon, Samurai," Chaosis coaxed. "You can do better than that."  
  
Saturn was now panting on top of the boulder, her legs given out on her as sweat had dripped off her forehead and made patterns on the rock. The idiot was smart, really. Now she was breathing hard, as hard as she had from Phys. Ed. class, which she dreaded so much. She looked up from the slits of the eyes to see Chaosis floating in the air, looking superior. Superior to the ape kings, she supposed.  
  
"Giving up all too soon, Samurai?" he mocked.   
  
I'll give you giving up...She closed her eyes, focusing.   
  
"Taking a nap, Princess?"  
  
Pluto snapped her head up within the battle. Energy was gathering from the distant stars all to Hotaru's tired body which sat on a boulder standing out at the middle of the battlefield. Suddenly, she got the message of what she was supposed to do.   
  
"Moon! Mercury! Mars! Jupiter! Uranus! Listen to me!"  
  
Despite their struggles, they listened as much as they could.   
  
"We must help each other if we are to win these minor problems," she told them, "for we are need of for a greater battle! Hotaru is gathering energy, supposed for a final blow, or maybe transformation. She needs out help, so we must help each other!"  
  
"How?" Mercury blurted from the intense grip.  
  
"It's Chaos," Mars replied for Pluto, getting the idea. "Hotaru is the main problem of Chaosis, especially her silence. So we use the silence of our hearts to fight these minor---er, problems."  
  
"Agreed!" Jupiter agreed. "Jupiter...Oak...Evolution!"  
  
Uranus muffled some response. "Uranus...World...Shaking!"  
  
They stated their attacks and threw it towards their enemies, ducking them as they criss-crossed their way; Uranus' attack to the large, viscious dog and Jupiter's attack to Uranus' little motorcycle problem.   
  
"Mars...Flame Sniper!"  
  
"Mercury...Ice Beam...Attack!"  
  
Mars' fire attack snapped the grip of the laptop from Mercury, dropping her to the ground as it scortched the laptop to burnt crisp. Mercury's ice attack zoomed through the air and turned the fire into beautiful icicles. Mars leaped over it, careful not to break them, and met up with the ice senshi.  
  
"Pluto...Death...Scream!"  
  
"Moon...Tiara...Go!"  
The ball of death raced over to Moon's supposedly glorious man and threw him back, killing off his words and letting go of Sailor Moon. Her tiara came over to Pluto's end and sliced the phantoms, silencing them and returning to Sailor Moon's forehead.   
  
"Great move, Pluto," she acknowledged as the other senshi came over.  
  
Mars was watching Hotaru as she helpless draw energy. "We have to protect her from Chaosis long enough for he to replenish again," she told the others, turning back to them. "We have to help her. Now."  
  
"Agreed," Uranus agreed boldly, leaping over to where Chaosis stood. She produced her Space Sword and swung it a couple of times to get the feel of it. She smiled gingerly at the dark figure that loomed above her, anticipating a move or a reaction, but got none. So she decided to make the first move. "Uranus...space...blaster!!!!"  
  
"Pathetic!" Chaosis shouted, blocking the attack efficiently and bouncing it back to Uranus. Too surprised to move, she got hit square on the belly and was thrown several meters back.   
  
"Uranus!" Moon cried helplessly as Jupiter and Mercury leaped into the scene, replacing the fallen Sailor Uranus, tense and in position to attack, back to back. They glared at Chaosis, who welcomed the dare as if it were only child's play.   
  
"Jupiter...Thuder...Now!"  
  
"Mercury...Ice Beam...Attack!"  
  
The two inner senshi's attack went off towards Chaosis, who laughed vulgarly and blocked it again, sending the very same attacks back to the two senshi. They leapt off the boulder in time before the attacks slammed into the boulter, shattering it to pieces.  
  
"It's no use!" Mercury cried. "He has some sort of forcefield around him, enabling him not to get hurt in any attack we use!"  
  
"He's just too strong!" Jupiter cried helplessly.   
  
Uranus groaned to her feet as Moon ran to help her up all the way. The strong outer senshi waved her assistance away briskly, and limped to the other senshi. "We must find some way to penetrate through the shield---"  
  
"Sailor Moon, you will have to transform," Pluto intervened.   
  
"Got it," she nodded. "Moon...Crisis...Make-Up!" In a flurry of movement, she had transformed into Super Sailor Moon.   
  
Pluto nodded intelligently. "All together now!"  
  
The senshi nodded. "Right!"  
  
"Pluto...Dead...Scream!"  
  
"Mars...Flame...Sniper!"  
  
"Mercury...Bubbles!"  
  
"Jupiter...Oak...Evolution!"  
  
"Uranus...Space Blaster!"  
  
"Moon...Tiara...Attack!"  
  
The attacks flew from them and hovered together to form one gigantic weave of attacks all rolled into one. It zoomed towards Chaosis, who looked at with a momentary surprise before he regained his composition and blocked the attack. The attack crashed to the six normal attacks and started falling---to Hotaru!  
"Oh no...Hotaru!" Moon shouted.   
  
"Sailor Saturn! Get out!" Pluto shouted.   
  
The girl didn't even move. She just sat there, rocking back and forth, as if chanting some kind of prayer. Whatever she was doing, she was so into it, she didn't recognize the things going on around her.  
  
"Hotaru!" the senshi cried in unison.   
  
Chaosis smiled at his ultimate achievement; the death of the silent samurai. It was something in his soul that he always wanted to happen, but---that meant losing a chance of being with her for all eternity. Oh well, he said dismissively.   
  
"I can't watch this!" Moon squealed in horror, shutting her eyes.   
  
"Hotaru," Rei grumbled. "Snap out of it..."  
  
Pluto sighed. "Oh, Little One..."  
  
Something extraordinary suddenly happened.   
  
  
~*End of Book 10*~  
So...what do you think? ^_~ The circle is almost complete. R&R! 


	11. Endgame

This is it....the second final chapter. Please R&R!  
  
  
~*Endgame*~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
"Hotaru!" the senshi cried.  
  
The attacks were running towards her body, which was perched on the boulder, from above, spiralling in brilliant colours of sound and light. She was unaware of the activity, as she rocked back and forth. Chaosis was laughing hysterically like a madman.   
  
"Oh no, Saturn!" Mars shouted.  
  
She rocked continuously as the attacks suddenly splitted away and slammed into the rocks around her, making loud crashes. The air was filled with small rocks and lots of dust as the senshi dropped to the ground. The air whirled faster and faster, circling the area where Hotaru was rocking. Even Chaosis was in the verge of panic.  
  
Hotaru snapped up to face Chaosis calmly, making him jump back.  
  
A light came from her chest, radiating her body with purple and gray light. She then stood, her body and mind replenished from the heat of battle, her cloak riding the wind, her hand back to her trusty glaive. Her eyes were flashing with a strange colour as she slowly floated off the ground to level with Chaosis, who stood dumbstruck.   
  
She lunged so fast, no one could keep track. Her fist pounded into Chaosis' cheek as she then waved around and then struck him again with her fist. Chaosis stumbled back before waging a full-out assult, all fists and feet, out at Saturn, who was blocking defensively.  
  
The attacks were going out at full force, as they leapt back and forth, their strikes making cracks of lightning filling the sky. Back and forth they went, their staffs and fists meeting, sweat dropping from them to the ground. After a series of attacks, they landed on some boulders, facing each other, panting and dripping with sweat.   
  
She waved her glaive around. "I will destroy you, Chaosis."  
  
"You've returned...again," he said. "That's something I always liked about you, Princess...you never give up and always making a comeback." He smiled casually. "Stubborn little firefly, are you?" He laughed brashly and arrogantly, then said, "I'm sorry, but now I will have to stop you..."  
  
"The mirror has two faces, huh?" she asked.  
  
He blinked. "What are you talking about?"  
  
She smiled cryptically. "You flatter me with words, yet you have no depth nor meaning in them. You want to kill me, but toy me with petty talk and avoid a real fight," she pointed out shortly. "It isn't working either way. You are no warrior, Chaosis! You are just one scared person because the light of goodness and the Messiah of Love is on my side." She paused, glaring down at him before saying, "Now, I will silence you, Chaosis, something I should have done a long time ago....Pluto! Open a gate!"  
  
Through the dust that billowed around the other senshi, who lay on their bellies and coughing up dust, Pluto rose from the dust, her trusty staff out before her as she flew to where Hotaru was calling for. "Gladly, Saturn!" she told her, while thinking, Uh-oh, I just hope the King understands why I must open the gates of time, before raising her Time Staff and said, "Gates of Time, heed me call! Open the gates, protect us from harm!"  
  
Thunder roared from a distant a crystal gate opened itself from nowhere, directly behind Chaosis. Time swelled, filled with images of the past, present and future, compelling and ready to swallow anyone into the trail of Time. Not something to think of lightly.   
  
Hotaru raised her glaive. "Silence...Sphere...."  
  
"Saturn...please..." he begged. His face was now twisted with agony and fear. "Please...I only wish...I only wish..."  
  
"To conquer me? To destroy me?" Her words came out hostily and cold as she waved her glaive about. Seeing the wild eyes, she thought for a moment if she was doing the right thing. For a moment, she saw a glimpse of sincerity in the clad man. Was she doing the right thing?   
  
Her voice softened. "I do not wish to be conqeured and I definitely wish to live a full life. As much as you can flatter me and tell me things that would please us both, our lives run different paths. We will always be opposites, and you and I can't change that." She raised her glaive high above her head. "I must do what I can to protect this world...Silence...Sphere...Engage!"  
  
"Princess---Ai---Ai---Aishiteru! I will be back!" He then whirled slowly, wounded, towards the gate Pluto had made for him. "I will be back, you watch me! You did a grave mistake, letting me into this time prison of yours. As long as I live, there will be no peace, no silence!" He then tilted his head back and drifted into the gate. It then closed upon itself, trapping Chaosis in the gate.   
  
Hotaru choked a sob of anger as she heard, "Hotaru..."   
  
She turned around to see Pluto slowly disappearing, her body slowly fading into oblivion. She tried to touch her, but felt only air beneath her touch. "Pluto, Pluto...what's going on?" she asked, her eyes wide with fear.  
  
Pluto smiled wisely. "The King's calling me...for...for..."  
  
"For what?" Hotaru cried.  
  
"For...using the Time Gate..."  
  
Hotaru fought tears. "No, Pluto, don't go! Don't!"  
  
"Go home, now, Hotaru. Your task is done. Rest now...."She then disappeared.  
  
The other senshi were finally getting up from the battle, shaking dust off of their uniforms when they saw Pluto disappearing into nothing and watching Hotaru fight the tears.  
  
Tears fell. "Setsuna!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
  
"You broke one of the rules, Pluto," the King said ominously.  
  
Pluto was standing in the middle of a room, a dark room, with mist billowing beneath her feet. She stood as though she was being taken for trial, in front of the King himself. "Yes, King, I have broken one of the rules," she said darkly. "For that, I must---"  
  
"No."  
  
Her head snapped up. "Y-Your Majesty?"  
  
"You do not have to give up your life this time," he told her. "You have helped the Messiah of Silence's fight against the Messiah of Chaos. Her job required you, and that is why you were pulled into this since the beginning. You and the senshi of fire. You have done well. I am pleased."  
  
She bowed her head. "T-Thank you."  
  
"Don't mention it," he responded. "But next time---"  
  
"Yes, your Majesty."  
  
He paused. "Go now, Time Senshi," he bid. "Guard the two Messiahs and guard the Gates in which you have guarded since the dawn of Time."  
  
"Arigatou."  
  
And then she was gone.   
  
The King sighed heavily as he got off the chair and began to walk away. "Poor Time Senshi," he mused. "Poor Messiah of Silence. They lead such lonely lives compared to the other senshi---it must be hard to have a great power such as yourselves. In that, you are important to the future. May the light shine upon your lonely hearts, senshi, for you are never alone..."  
  
  
"Pluto!"  
  
"Setsuna!"   
  
"Are you okay?"  
  
"You got us worried for a moment there!"  
  
"He didn't take your life this time..."  
  
Setsuna brushed their comments as she looked around. She was at Tomeo's residence, the living room. "Where is Hotaru?" she asked immediately, brushing her green hair back.   
  
"She's resting upstairs," Minako said.   
  
"She's been through a lot," Michiru said mildly. "Let her rest."  
  
"At least her father's relieved," Ami said.   
  
Setsuna nodded, sitting down.   
  
"So tell us," Usagi said curiously, "how did it go?"  
  
^^ Oh, yes. ^^ R&R! 


	12. The Return of a Promise

The final installment of the story. ^^ Yay! Now I can work on the other stuff that I'd been meaning to work on, but I'm not giving up on SM right now...anyways, read and review!!!! ^^  
  
~*The Return of a Promise*~  
~Apocalypse of the Silence and Chaos~  
  
Gray.  
  
Mist.   
  
Shift.  
  
Chaosis' mortified face as he whirled into the gate.  
  
The whirling ball of silence slamming into Chaosis.  
  
Pluto disappearing into nothingness.   
  
"Ai---"  
  
Hotaru shifted in her sleep as she kept on living in the past events. The ruins of her former palace. The rings to the south of the setting horizon. The moons that loomed nearby.   
  
Chaos....  
  
The man looming towards her from the mist dead ahead.  
  
"---I will silence you, Chaosis---"  
  
The flings of lightning, the cries of her fellow senshi friends as she desperately fought the dark one. The clashes of the fist, the leg, the arm and the staffs. The rings of the battle echoed throughtout the planet as the battle commenced.  
  
"Ai---"  
  
"I must do what I can to protect this world---"  
  
"As long as I live, there will be no peace, no silence!"  
  
The time gate closing up in the middle of the air, trapping her formidable foe inside the trails of time. Trapped, at least, until he found some clever devised plan to get himself out of it again.  
  
"Pluto!!!!! No!!!!"  
  
Hotaru gasped, bolted up to her bed, her forehead sticky wet with her sweat, her bangs stuck right there with it. She looked around uncertainly; she was on her bed, her lamps shining its light to her gently. She was in a sleeveless purple shirt and shorts.   
  
She turned to see her father jolt up with a start. He was sitting on a stool, his head was on the bed till she awoke with a gasp. He rubbed his eyes sleepily beneath his large glasses before smiled demurely. "Hotaru! Am I so glad you are awake!" He hugged his daughter tightly. "I thought you were never going to wake up like your mother there!"  
  
Hotaru was wide-eyed, cold with wonder. He...he cares? Her mind spiralled back to her earlier questions about being alone and silent. Her classmates feared and excluded her. The senshi never seemed to want to accompany her in the searches, her father was always working....  
  
"Hotaru!"  
  
She turned around to see Setsuna, Rei, Usagi and the rest of the gang standing at the doorway, all smiling kindly at them in their uniforms. She looked at them wide-eyed; how long had she been sleeping? Her father excused himself and left the room so they could talk to Hotaru privately.   
  
"Hotaru, how are you feeling?" Minako asked.   
  
She swallowed dryly and looked up at Minako, trying to regain her composition. "Okay," she replied faintly. "I think." Her eyes averted to meet Setsuna's calm glazing ones. "Setsuna! I thought---I thought you---I thought you went away forever!"  
  
Setsuna smiled wisely, like a mother to her child. "I was pardoned."  
  
Hotaru didn't say anything.   
  
"You did a pretty good job back there, Hotaru," Haruka said from the back. She was standing beside Michiru with her arms crossed, her eyes closed. "I got to admit, I didn't know you had it in you, kiddo."  
  
Hotaru clenched her jaw, but didn't say anything.   
  
"You were very important since the beginning," Usagi said gently, her face so much like the Neo-Queen Serenity. "I never knew you had such strength within you---I'm just sorry that you had to go through all that trouble to defeat Chaosis."  
  
Hotaru nodded numbly as they started chattering about the battle and the little mirages that they thought were interesting till Chaosis turned it against them. They smiled at Hotaru, gave her a job well done once more before filing out her door.   
  
Rei was still standing in the room, looking at her.   
  
"Yes, Rei-chan?" Hotaru asked faintly.  
  
She brushed her hair back and approached the bed. "Back there, before he...you know," she began, "I may not have been looking but I heard everything. He said 'Aishiteru'." She shook her head, her eyes wide with confusion and sadness. "He didn't really mean it---did he?"  
  
Hotaru sighed, brushing her bangs back. "Actually, he did."  
  
"Why?" Rei asked.  
  
Hotaru breathed in heavily. "He---He has been enamoured by me since the Kingdom's days," she explained. "I can't recall a lot but he kept trying to flatter me, disguising himself as a courtier and trying to court me, or maybe as one of the other royalties...he never really worked hard for my affections because all the while he also wanted to destroy me. You can say he was torn between two desires, and because of that, I stopped him. Twice."  
  
"Your task isn't over, is it?"  
  
"No," Hotaru responded. "For now, yes. Until he gets out of his prison."  
  
Gray.  
  
Mist.   
  
Shift.  
  
"As long as I live, there will be no peace, no silence!!!!"  
  
Gray.  
  
Mist.   
  
Shift.  
  
Hotaru managed a weak smile. "Don't worry," she said gently. "There will be no wars---for now."  
  
  
It was a bright sunny day as Hotaru was walking home from Mugen. She had returned to school after a few days' absence with a more enlightened spirit than before. Her classmates were still afraid of her, but she was used to that despite her fight.   
  
She made a turn, prepared to take the shortcut in the park when she saw the other senshi. The inners were sitting on the bench with Chiba Mamoru (obviously Usagi was draped around him) and chattering about. The outers were sitting around the fountain, Haruka obviously standing up and looking towards the sky. They weren't talking at all.  
  
Uh-oh, Hotaru said to herself. I don't want to go in there. Maybe I should---  
Too late. Both Michiru and Usagi saw Hotaru standing dumb-struck at the entrance of the park and waved. "Hotaru! Come here!"  
  
Hotaru shook her head and started running down the street.  
  
"Hotaru!" they cried. But she was gone.  
  
She kept running; no, no, no. They were her friends, her allies in battle. Why was she running from them? She choked back a sob, leaning heavily on a big oak in front of an ancient temple's forest and dropping her school bag, panting heavily. They didn't understand what she was going through again, like she had so many times before---who could she trust? Were they really her friends?  
  
Her surroundings seemed to shift slightly, like a tilt.   
  
Hotaru blinked; what was going on?  
  
She couls see a faint figure looking at her. Dark clad, pale complextion, raven hair---She started to panic. It was Chaosis, with his ebonite eyes looking straight at her. She stood back sharply, her fists in the air, ready to fight. "Wha--what the---"  
  
"I'll be watching you, Princess...."  
  
Hotaru screamed as the image disappeared. Her surroundings returned to normal as she placed her hands on her ears and slid to the ground again, still screaming. She didn't notice Rei and Setsuna running towards the striken Hotaru.   
  
"Hotaru---Hotaru, what's wrong?" Rei asked.  
  
"Are you okay?" Setsuna asked with a worried glance.  
  
Hotaru was cold, dead cold, and pale. Chaosis would be watching her. She looked up to the sky, hoping for heaven to open up and take her away. She fought the tears once again. This is my destiny, isn't it? she wondered. To be haunted by chaos and burdened by silence?  
  
And from a distance, "Poor Senshi of Silence."  
  
  
~End~  
Ta-da! What do you think? Please R&R! 


End file.
